A former Central Otago licensed building practitioner now living in Australia has been sentenced on three offences, including forgery and working with a suspended licence.

Lucy Walsh was sentenced to $10,000 in the Alexandra District Court by Judge Dominic Flatley on August 28.

The charges followed an investigation into design work for a small dwelling in Central Otago, but the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBEI) wouldn’t give details on exactly where.

Lucy’s Licensed Building Practitioner (LBP) licence has been suspended since September 30, 2021 for non-compliance with licensing conditions.

Despite this, she carried out restricted building work without supervision from a LBP, and then submitted design work by forging her employer’s signature and LBP number.

Under the Building Act 2004, all restricted building work must be carried out or supervised by an LBP.

When applying for building consent, Ms Walsh declared herself to be an LBP in the Certificate of Design Work. 

She later submitted a second Certificate of Design Work that used her employer’s LBP number and electronic signature without permission. 

Central Otago District Council raised concerns about the work and contacted her employer, who confirmed they had no knowledge of the project, did not supervise the design work, and did not authorise her to use their LBP number and signature on the Certificate of Design Work.

Council checks during consent processing uncovered the issue and confirmed the supervising LBP details had been used without consent.

Registrar of Licensed Building Practitioners Duncan Connor said there was a clear breach of professional trust when another LBP’s identity was used to support a false certificate.

“The Court’s $10,000 fine reflects the seriousness of this conduct. Practitioners must keep their licence current, and consumers should always check the LBP Public Register before engaging anyone to do restricted building work.”

The LBP scheme was established to protect consumers, lift building practitioner competency, and ensure only qualified professionals carry out or supervise Restricted Building Work (RBW). 

It also helps homeowners make informed choices by providing a public register of licensed practitioners. 

RBW includes design and construction that affects the primary structure and external moisture management system of a residential building — areas critical to safety and durability. When this work is done by someone who is unlicensed or unsupervised, it could lead to serious compliance failures and costly problems.

Ms Walsh was sentenced after being convicted of two offences under the Building Act 2004 and one offence of forgery under the Crimes Act 1961.

The judge considered community detention, but determined a significant fine was appropriate.

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